Playing with someone who is much weaker

Try playing with your opposite hand It makes it very fun for you, and perhaps makes the game a little more fair. While your shots may not be as good as his, your strategy and tactics must surely be better..

The other option is to have him play half court while you play the full court.

By the way, where do you play in Ottawa?

 

My coach is about two flights higher than me so when we play singles he never smashes except on kills. He would keep hitting to my backhand to make me move and then drop, over and over to work on my footwork and endurance. Try doing that, if not just play all out. Or you can just clear over and over till he stays in the back then drop, both ways works on footwork and he'll get his clear down.

 

It is tougher to play against weaker players, I've found.

Not because I'm using lesser shots (I still try to place my shots as best I can), but because the weaker opponent usually hits half court shots that are not in my usual hitting zone. I don't want to kill them, else the rallies would be over very quickly, so I'll try to place them tactically.

The tough part is because his shots have no momentum in them, so I have to change my swing using a different striking action. This is the part that plays havoc with my swing and timing later when I go back to my normal game.

 

Wow it takes some skill to turn a lift into a tight spinning net shot lol. Even more skill to turn a clear into a net shot

Sometimes if you have no choice but to play against a weaker opponent, you should try to find a good match afterward. Or, if for instance your lift becomes less sharp after playing with him, take some time after the game to do consecutive drops while he lifts.

Have you tried beating him badly in singles? Does he still want to play after that? Maybe there's no reason for you to go easy on him or do poor quality shots that he can retrieve. It might be better to just put the shuttle to the ground. Maybe if you beat him very badly, he will be more willing to do drills.

 

the thing I find it difficult to play with friends that don't play hardcore badminton is I don't get into a rhythm like I would with my same level or even better players. when you play tough games, footwork, anticipation and rhythm are such key parts of a good game. but when you play weaker opponents, their shots are weaker (so it can mess with your footwork and rhythm). often I find myself getting to the bird too early and having to wait to hit my shot, which makes me lazy to get back into the point.

but playing weaker players can toughen your metal strengths. try to tell yourself to win 5 points straight without losing even if your opponent hits a fluke shot.

or, if it's just for fun, let your friend play halfcourt and you play full court. that way he/she can practice their hitting strokes and you can work on your court coverage and consistency. see if you can pin your opponent to one of the back corners from all areas of your court.

 

You can tell him what my teacher told me: "you are not allowed to play games until I say so."

If I were you, since he's so convinced that playing games will make him better, I'd find other people for him to play with.

 

If you have no problem being mean, you can do what I do.
Keep hitting just beyond his reach and get upset at him for not even trying to return the birds. Throw in a few insults about how your grandma is better than he is. Aim a few smashes at his head. If you need to rotate players every game, beat them really quickly so they get very little court time, then blame them for it.

Those are usually last resort tactics. Normally, I just tell them I want to mix it up and don't feel like playing against the same person all day long. People usually understand.

 

It's true that your footwork might get lazy since most of the returned shots are weaks and only halfcourt. Usually you have to make bunch of shots to get the halfcourt returned shots from your opponents and then you can put away. For me, I just work on my weak point i.e. backhand smashes, push him into one corners, xcourt lift /xcourt net, playing backhand only.

 

that can deffinetly be a tough situation to find yourself in. it is true that you can practice your strokes and everything but the thing that i find the most affective of ones game is that when you play somebody weaker you are for the greater majority of the time in control of the rally. this is not always the case when you play more advanced players and i find thats something that is just tough to simulate when playing agianst weaker players that cant put you into those sort of pressure situations and if you try and create them yourself there just not the same.

personally ill try and just practice strokes and mental toughness as well as whatever movement i can when playing them. im not going to lie ive done this before sometimes ill turn it into isolation and just hit to one corner for the entire rally seeing that i can win the point or not and ive done that for whole games almost. other times the score gets to 10-1 and i just loose interest because the game is simply to easy and at that point its just better to finish it off and get on with some training.

on the other note if your friend doesnt want to do drills thats a tough one, some people do need to understand that to get better you have to practice shots and playing games alone will not make you substancially better. you need to keep practicing the shots over and over to perfect them. well hopefully you will be able to get him to do some drills with you else best of luck with playing games aginst him.

 

That situation is probably the best for you, he might get more competitive games with other people and you won't have to put up with him.

If he really thinks you were trying your best then I suggest that just one time you play him, concentrate on every point and hand him a vicious beatdown. It isn't particularly kind or sporting but he'll soon get the idea that there is a gulf between your levels. I encountered a player like your friend - he just wanted to play games and avoided focused practice. I played a close game with him once to try out some new things and then he got it in to his head that he could beat me. The next time we played I made a point of beating him 21-1.

If you do end up playing this person again, I suggest you try to focus on placement. Don't overpower him with your smash, make him run by putting the shuttle in the corners.

 

what about playing doubles with him? that way, if you guys play another pair around the same level, he can stay motivated and get practice, you can work on your reflex and shots (push, net, smash), and you two can continue to play together and buildup friendship?

 

Maybe in your next game you can decide that, for five points in a row, you'll aim to play every single shot to his backhand side no matter what he does. Then for the next five points you'll play a clear followed by a drop followed by another clear followed by another drop...but don't tell him it's a drill ;-)

 

I like Danstevens' suggestions. Though you're good friends, you've no obligation to play only him all days. You can allocate a small percentage of your play time to play with/against him (Singles/Doubles) for fun/bonding. But, yes, do convince him via actual games that you two are at very different levels. When you do play him, however, just work on areas that you'd like to improve, e.g. deception, stay relax, etc.

Do try to find/introduce him to some other players of about his level, so he can have some closer "real" games. When he wants to improve, you can let him know you're available.

 

If you want to play with him, then try to improve your own weakness as well as try to make the game fun. For example, if you have great power game, but lack or net control, then try to practice more net strokes / net drop, instead of your usual bang-bang games. Your purpose for such game is not to determine whose better, or how many points you can win, but try to utilize the time to improve both sides.

Personally, I found such games are great to work on my consistency and placement. For example, when you drop, you can force yourself to drop the same spot over and over. This way, easy for your oppoents to catch and play a meangingful rally, and you can really use it as your own drill session.